


Every Superhero Needs His (or her) Back-up

by kyrene



Category: Sky High (2005), Superman Returns (2006)
Genre: Crossover, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-10-02
Updated: 2010-10-02
Packaged: 2017-10-12 09:11:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/123269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyrene/pseuds/kyrene
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Superman comes to speak at Sky High, and he's not there alone. Will doesn't get it, but Warren does.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Every Superhero Needs His (or her) Back-up

It was a historic day in Sky High. After years of effort on her part, Principal Powers had finally gotten Superman, _The_ Superman, to do a guest lecture. This was almost as exciting as the time both The Commander and Jetstream had come to give a demonstration on the responsible ways to use super powers. Almost.

The lecture hall was packed -- Will Stronghold didn't think that there was anyone in the entire school who wasn't there; students, faculty, heck, even the janitor was there.

As the son of The Commander and a budding superhero in his own right, with multiple powers, Will could have easily gotten a seat in the front of the hall, but he preferred to sit near the back. In large part because of the tall, lanky figure slouching next to him. Warren Peace disliked anything that drew attention to him, and so it was sort of ironic that he was friends with Will Stronghold, but Will was grateful nonetheless. He couldn't imagine _not_ being with Warren, so he did the best he could to accommodate Warren's needs and preferences.

It was Superman up there on the stage, speaking into the microphone, and yet Will found himself drifting off into swooping daydreams. His mother had been teaching him to control his powers of flight, and seeing Superman's long red cape made him think longingly of how it felt to be in the air, free, soaring, the wind in his eyes....

"Hey." An elbow bumped his side, hard enough to jar him from his thoughts. "C'mon," Warren muttered, quietly enough that only Will could hear him. "I need to have a smoke. Let's go up to the roof."

Will glanced at the tall superhero in primary colors who was standing at the front of the hall. This was exciting, true, a singular event, but he was the son of The Commander. So even though Superman was a legend, Will had grown up calling a man with virtually the same powers "Dad". Superman was cool and all, but this was getting a little boring. Sky High -- the superhero school that it was -- had the ability to suck all the fun out of everything. Such was the power of learning.

With a little shrug, he slipped out of his seat after Warren, following him from the lecture hall. Everyone else was rapt, hanging on Superman's every word, so they made it without hindrance. The hallways were empty, echoing with the beats of Warren's boot heels and the padding of Will's sneakers.

The roof access door squealed with a loud metallic whine as Warren pushed it open, and Will tried not to flinch. They wouldn't get caught; everyone was in the lecture hall. Still, it was an ingrained reaction. The son of The Commander and Jetstream shouldn't be breaking the rules like this, even in a relatively innocuous way.

It was a lovely afternoon, up here, far above the Earth's surface. The air was cool but the sun was warm, the breeze was scented faintly with sea-salt, and there were a few puffy white clouds floating lazily by.

Will sat on the edge of the parapet, watching as Warren lit up. He could feel the heat from five feet away, and squinted his eyes against the glare. The flames radiated up off of Warren's arms and shoulders, the air around him wavering with the force of the energy he was expending.

Warren had confessed after the first time Will had caught him venting like this, that extra energy seemed to be building up in him, itching under his skin, driving him crazy until he could let it out in a safe area. It had been happening for a couple of weeks now, on and off, and while Warren just wrote it off to a further development of his powers, Will had to admit that he was a little concerned. And he wasn't the only one.

"You know, Layla thinks that you ought to see the school nurse about this," Will said, trying to sound neutral on the subject, as Warren's fire finally dispersed, flaming away, sinking back into his body.

Warren glared, tucking hair behind his ear. His leather jacket was still smoking, and his face was a little flushed. Warren resisted anything that smacked of authority on principle. He might be a superhero in training now, but he was still the son of a supervillian, on his father's side.

"I'm fine. Besides, that crazy old bat would only make things worse."

"Well, maybe you could talk to Principal Powers?" Will suggested, forgetting that he was supposed to be neutral. "Or, hey, maybe Superman!"

Warren gave him that look that he hated; the one that made it clear he thought hat Will had said something stupid. "What could Superman do?" he asked, shaking his head, his hair falling back in his face. "His power isn't fire."

"He can... set things on fire with his eyes," Will offered weakly. Then he smiled and shrugged. It was too nice a day to get in a fight. He and Warren were friends now, and he didn't like it when they occasionally clashed. Even if he was a little worried about Warren's powers and what they might be doing to his body. "Look, forget it. Let's just go back inside before we get caught."

"Wuss." Warren was grinning as he said it, though, that wide, sharp, white grin that Will loved to see. He was no longer smoking, and he led the way back through the heavy door and into the empty halls.

They jostled their way down the stairs, and Warren was still a little warm, but he always had been, even when he wasn't exerting his powers. Will could smell heated leather and the faintest hint of smoke. He tried to imagine Warren wearing a costume after they graduated, but the very thought made him snicker.

"What's so funny?" Warren asked, shoving Will into a line of lockers with a tinny clash.

"Nuthin'." Will shoved him back, being careful to regulate his powers so that Warren didn't go through a wall. There was roughhousing, and then there was destruction of school property; he didn't need to do any more of the latter.

"Liar," Warren accused, but without any real vehemence. "Let's go around back," he suggested, sticking his hands in his pockets.

"Okay," Will agreed. It had been easy to sneak out, but it might not be so simple to sneak back in. If they went through the stage exit, they might be able to get inside unnoticed.

"Eep! Hold up!" Will squeaked, clutching at Warren, fingers scrabbling on the worn leather of his jacket He'd caught sight of a person sitting on the bench outside of lecture hall's back door. "There's someone there!"

Warren cuffed him in the arm. "Idiot. I can see that."

"Ow!" Will hissed, rubbing the spot, even though it hadn't really hurt. He _was_ Will Stronghold; his father's son and all that.

"Who is it?" he hissed, squinting down the hall at the figure he didn't recognize. It was a man, dressed in a neat suit that Will's superhero trained brain labeled as "secret disguise". But maybe not. The man was average height, average build, with plain brown hair and a handsome face. About the only remarkable thing about him, that Will could see from where he peered around the corner, was the sharp cheekbones that caught the sunlight flooding in through the high windows across the hall.

"He came with our guest speaker," Warren rumbled in answer, surprising Will, because he hadn't been expecting a reply. The man was writing in a notebook, a laptop case on the floor beside him, his head bent and his attention held by his work. Will wondered what he was doing.

"How do you know?" he asked, keeping his voice down. He hoped that the man didn't have super hearing. He seemed to be unaware of the two teenage boys down the hall staring at him, though.

"Saw 'em arrive together," Warren grunted, somehow managing to sound as though Will was dumb for asking. Sometimes it was easier for Will to remember why they had once been enemies than others.

"Is he a superhero?" Will ventured. The man looked quite normal, but so did Will, much as he hated to admit it. Superpowers weren't always apparent to the naked eye.

"Nope."

Instead of asking how Warren knew, Will frowned. "Superman doesn't have a sidekick," he mused. Though the man kind of looked as though he was sidekick material -- not that Will meant that in a bad way, since most of his closest friends were sidekicks. _Hero Support_ , rather. "Does he?"

"Nope," Warren answered again, and Will glared at him. "Then what is he doing here?"

Warren smirked at him, an expression that always aggravated Will. "Figure it out, Stronghold."

Will scowled. "Jerk." He focused again on the man in question. "Well, he could be a mad scientist who designs gadgets, only he doesn't look 'mad' and Superman doesn't need gadgets."

Warren let out a sound that was suspiciously similar to a muffled laugh.

"Maybe Superman has a publicist now?" Will forged onward, ignoring his friend. "But then he'd be inside, listening to him speak."

This time Warren definitely laughed. Will smacked him in the arm and Warren hit him back. "Try again," Warren rumbled. "You're not even close."

Will pulled a face. "Well, he's not a reporter. Everyone knows that Lois Lane is Superman's personal journalist."

Warren shook his head. "Sad, Stronghold. Very sad."

"What?" Will couldn't help he sounded so irritated; it was how he felt. Realizing he'd raised his voice, he glanced over and ducked around the corner, even though the man hadn't looked up from his notes. "He _is_ a reporter?"

"He works for a newspaper," Warren offered, as though that clarified anything.

Will blinked, than fixed Warren with a disgruntled look. "If you know everything, why won't you tell me?" he demanded. "Is it so much fun making me guess?"

Warren's smug expression answered _that_ question, even before he nodded. "Yup."

"You can be a real jerk sometimes, you know," Will muttered peevishly. There was a sudden silence, making him realize that the halls had been echoing faintly with the sound of Superman speaking, audible even through the walls due to the excellent sound system that Sky High employed. Then the ocean-rush of applause washed through the air. "Oh no, we missed the rest of the lecture!"

"Relax," Warren instructed, clapping a hand to Will's shoulder. "We'll just head for the doors and join the crowd when everyone leaves. No one will know we were gone."

"Okay." Will didn't think it sounded like the greatest plan, but it was all they had. He could hear Principal Powers' voice, now, and knew that it wouldn't be much longer before the lecture was done.

Peeking around the corner at the mystery man, Will watched the door beside the bench open. In a sweep of crimson cape, Superman stepped out, escaping while the principal kept the student captive inside. Smart superhero, Will thought. Otherwise he'd be stuck here for hours, signing autographs and answering stupid questions. Will's father, The Commander, reveled in that sort of thing, but Will was aware that Superman was more retiring, and didn't care much for the publicity.

The man who had been waiting in the hall tucked his notebook away in his laptop case and rose smoothly to his feet. He smiled up at Superman, and Will thought that maybe he wasn't so average after all -- he was actually quite stunning. That bright smile really made his features come to life. Will still couldn't figure out who he was, though.

The man asked a question, and Superman grinned back, lowering his head to reply. Will watched the two lean close, and he thought that he almost had it, but then there was a ruckus from inside the hall; the sound of many excited high school students being given their freedom.

Superman and his companion startled, and Warren grabbed a hold of Will's arm, dragging him in the opposite direction that the two man escaped in.

"C'mon," Warren growled, tugging Will toward the doors to the lecture hall. They had to time this right; after a few students had exited, but before everyone was gone.

"Who was that, Warren?" Will pursued, suddenly overwhelmed with curiosity. "Seriously. I want you to tell me!"

Warren rolled an exasperated look over his shoulder as they hovered near the double doors, waiting to mingle with their fellow students. They had a few seconds longer. "What does a superhero need, Stronghold? Besides a sidekick, a scientist, or a publicist?"

Will blinked. "Huh?"

"What are your parents?" Warren asked him, and Will wondered why he couldn't just give him a straight answer, instead of stringing him along with a bunch of leading questions.

"Married?"

Warren looked so disgusted that Will had to smack him again, just on principle.

"They're partners," Will cataloged, trying to think what every superhero needed, according to Warren, as the doors flew open and the first rush of rowdy teenagers burst out. "They fight together, but you said this guy's not a superhero."

"C'mon." Warren grabbed his arm, tugging again, but Will held his ground.

"Not until you tell me," he snapped, feeling put out and put upon. He'd asked a simple question, and if Warren knew the answer, then why couldn't he tell him? "If he's not a superhero or a sidekick, not a reporter or a mad scientist, then who _was_ that guy? What is it that a superhero needs, Warren?!"

Warren shot him an exasperated look, releasing his arm. He responded with one word.

"Lover."

Then he was gone, vanished into the crowd, and Will had to hurry to catch up, before he was left behind entirely. He had a lot more questions, like how Warren knew or if he was just guessing, and what he thought of it.

He didn't know whether Warren was right or not, but if he was... well, good for them. Will knew how happy his parents were together, and he knew that someday he'd be that happy with the person he would spend the rest of his life with.

Superman did enough for the world that he deserved to be happy.

And every superhero could use a little support... even if they didn't have a sidekick.

"Hey, Warren! Wait up!"


End file.
